


Sweet Nightmares - Book 4

by opal_sapphire



Series: Sweet Nightmares [4]
Category: Legacies (TV 2018), The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries & Related Fandoms, The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Blood, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-21
Updated: 2019-11-06
Packaged: 2019-11-26 16:21:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 12
Words: 20,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18182930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/opal_sapphire/pseuds/opal_sapphire





	1. Gather Up The Killers

The sound of a car engine made Morgana look up. She set her book down and stood. Grendel hopped on her shoulder, and she met Hayley on the porch. An old truck parked in front of the house. The girls walked over as Mary exited the truck.

She smiled at Hayley. "Well, now aren't you a sight."

"You're sure no one followed you?" Hayley asked.

"I've been avoiding trouble since well before you were born. Now, where's that little girl?"

Mary moved to go to the house, but Hayley stopped her. "Did you find it?"

Mary hesitated and gave her a look. Morgana crossed her arms, and Grendel grumbled.

"Mary, please, after all this time we are this close to getting them back," Hayley went on. "We found a cure for Freya's poison, we got a witch to siphon Rebekah's hex."

"So you're really gonna do it?" Mary asked, almost incredulous. "Cure 'em and then wake 'em up? Did you ever stop to think Hope might be better off without them?"

"I made a promise."

"To who? To Elijah?"

"To my daughter. I promised her a home where she would feel safe and protected by the people that love her."

"She's a Mikaelson too, you know," Morgana added. "And as a result, she has inherited all of their enemies, on top of a power neither I nor Hayley quite understand."

"She needs someone to teach her to control it," Hayley agreed. "I can't do this on my own."

"You told me to wake the Mikaelsons you needed to find all seven werewolf packs," Mary said. "You found six. The last one, the Malraux, I thought they'd been killed off." She pulled out a piece of paper. "According to this, there might be one left."

Hayley reached for the paper, but Mary pulled away. "Hayley. You looked for five years. You found nothing. Suddenly I get word of a lead. What if someone else found it too? What if it's a trap?"

Fair point. Morgana and Hayley shared a glance, and Hayley took the note. Grendel jumped off Morgana's shoulder and ran ahead into the house. They followed.  
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It was only a little while later that Morgana and Hayley were ready to go. Mary would be staying with Hope at the house.

"Do you have to go?" Hope asked.

"We do," Hayley replied. "But we'll be back very, very soon." She smiled. "And we won't be alone."

Hope smiled back. Lord help them, she was adorable.

"I'll call you every night before bed, okay?" Hayley continued. "In the meantime, you listen to Mary. Deal?"

"Deal."

Hayley kissed her pointer and middle fingers and held them out to her. Hope did the same, and they locked their fingers together before hugging. Hayley and Mary went up to the moving truck.

Morgana crouched down in front of Hope. "Would you like Grendel to stay with you?"

Hope shook her head. "No. He needs to be with you so he can protect you." She hugged Morgana. "Bye, Auntie Ana."

"Bye, Hopey."

Morgana joined Hayley in the truck.

"You know, for the first time in a while I've got a good feeling about this," she said. "I think this is it."

She rapped her knuckles against her head. Hayley chuckled and started the truck.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana crossed her arms, wishing she'd brought sunglasses. They'd tracked the Malraux wolf--Keelin--to a bar in Austin, Texas. Hayley had gone inside to talk to her, while Morgana and Grendel waited outside.

The back door opened. She pushed herself off the wall. Hayley and Keelin came out. Just as the door closed, Keelin elbowed Hayley in the face and took off. Morgana chased after her, calling on Air to get ahead. She landed next to Hayley, who was already waiting. Keelin turned the corner, saw them and stopped.

"Do not do that again," Hayley growled.

"I'm not going without a fight," Keelin replied.

"We're not here to fight you," Morgana sighed. "You're the last of your pack. That makes you special for reasons we don't have time to explain."

"I don't care about your problems," Keelin snapped.

"You should," Hayley replied. "Because there are others who know how important you are, and they will come for you."

"Look, I have a life, a career, relationships. Someone tries to take that, they're gonna have to kill me."

Grendel tensed, digging his claws into Morgana's shoulder. Hayley glanced at her; she heard it too.

Morgana turned back to Keelin. "Sorry, we don't have time for this."

She whispered a spell under her breath, and Keelin dropped unconscious. Hayley caught her, and they fled.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"For what it's worth, I truly am sorry about this," Morgana said as she tightened the bonds on Keelin's wrists.

She went back over to Hayley and continued setting up.

"We're not your enemies," Hayley said. "If we'd left you where you were you'd be dead already."

"Let me guess," Keelin replied. "We're on the run from vampires. You have the same stink they do."

"I'm special. I'm a hybrid. Half-vampire, half-werewolf." She turned around to face Keelin. "And considering that I saved your ass, you should show me some respect."

Keelin glanced at Morgana. "And what are you?"

"Elemental witch," Morgana replied.

"How do I know you two weren't the ones who led them to me?"

"We weren't. Look," Morgana added. "They know who you are and they want you dead. The only way to survive is to do exactly as we tell you."

"It's not like I have a choice."

Hayley pulled out the venom extractor, and Keelin shifted. "Hey, look, I don't know what kind of pervy stuff you're into, but I am not that kind of girl."

"This is a device to extract your venom," Hayley explained. "And before you ask, yes, it will hurt."

"Why are you doing this to me?" Keelin asked.

"We're trying to save our family." Hayley gestured to the coffins. Freya's was open. "Keelin, the people in there are dying. The only thing keeping them alive is a sleep spell, and the only one that can cure them is her. She's a witch, and she left us instructions on how to wake her up early. The only thing we're missing is your venom. Once she gets on her feet, we can give her the ingredients we got. And, with any luck, no one has to die."

"So if I give you what you want, will you let me go?"

"You have my word."

"And mine as well," Morgana added.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Hayley handed the vial of Keelin's venom to Morgana. Morgana set it down on the table.

"You got my venom," Keelin said. "When do I get to go?"

"As soon as we know it works," Morgana replied.

"And when will that be?"

"You'll know when you see it," Hayley promised.

"You have to wake up Sleeping Beauty, right? How do you do that?"

Hayley picked up the syringe and went over to Freya. "You know, you ask a lot of questions."

She plunged the syringe into Freya's heart. Morgana quickly went over to see if it was working. Freya's eyes shot open, and she sat up gasping. Hayley and Morgana hugged her and helped her out of the coffin.

"Are you okay?" Morgana asked.

"Did you get the ingredients?" Freya replied.

Hayley nodded.

"Good. I need to begin. If I can't turn all that into a cure, Elijah and Kol are going to die."

"How much longer do we have?" Hayley asked.

"Maybe an hour, assuming we have that long."

Morgana gathered everything and set it out for Freya. "Is this everything?"

"Venom from the seven packs, along with Klaus' blood, infused by my magic and amplified by the dark objects," Freya replied. "It's going to take all of my strength and more than a little luck, but it should be enough to fashion a cure to save my brothers."

"Should, what do you mean should?" Hayley asked.

Before Freya could answer, Grendel growled.

"Someone's here," Morgana announced.

"Let me go, please," Keelin called. "If it's vampires they're gonna kill me."

"They must have been tracking her," Freya said. "Hayley, I need more time."

Hayley nodded and went to take care of them. Morgana and Freya sat across from each other in the seven-point star and started the spell.

"La candidat au somme la toxique cantus. La candidat au somme la toxique cantus. La candidat au somme la toxique cantus."

Keelin muttered something, and Morgana cracked an eye open. A vampire was reaching for her. Freya waved her hand, and he grunted in pain before collapsing, blood leaking from his eyes and nose. Morgana smirked and focused back on the spell.

"You just waved your hand and his brain melted?" Keelin asked incredulously.

"Well, that's what happens when people annoy me," Freya replied.

"La candidat au somme la toxique cantus. La candidat au somme la toxique cantus. La candidat au somme la toxique cantus. La candidat au somme la toxique cantus."

They stopped. Freya stood and picked up the bowl. Morgana stood as well, and they went over to Elijah's coffin. Morgana opened it, and Freya raised his arm. The bite was still nasty. She rubbed the cure on to the bite. Morgana said a prayer.  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana smiled to herself and took a deep breath. Elijah, Kol and Rebekah were awake and cured. It had worked. It hadn't all been for nothing.

Now all they had to do was get to New Orleans and get Klaus. Then they'd leave again, and everyone and everything would finally be alright.


	2. No Quarter

The screams of a prisoner rang out from somewhere in the woods. The corpses of the rest of the prisoners, as well as the guards, were sprawled across the ground. Morgana and Freya walked over to Elijah and Rebekah.

"Is this absolutely necessary?" Freya sighed.

"That depends," Rebekah replied. "Do you want us at our full strength or do you plan on rescuing Nik on your own?"

"Hate to break it to you, but death rattles are a bit distracting," Morgana said, deadpan. "We're trying to break a cloaking spell."

Elijah pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. " _Kol, would you please?_ "

The screaming stopped.

"Thank you." He looked back at the girls. "You were saying?"

"Klaus is still in New Orleans, most likely somewhere underground," Freya said.

"But we can't get a read on exactly where unless we're in the city itself," Morgana finished.

Kol and Hayley joined them.

"Yeah, that's gonna be a problem," she said. "I have contacts in New Orleans. As you can imagine, the place is crawling with vampires, all of whom hate us. Whatever we do, we need to do it fast."

"Well, I wasn't planning on a pub crawl," Freya replied. "I don't want to stay any longer than we have to, but we need to go."

"Whoa, wait, wait," Kol interrupted. "We're not doing this today?"

"Hasn't Nik suffered enough?" Rebekah shot back.

"Yes. And I've died. Twice. I'm not about to give Marcel a shot at third. Now, I say we draw that muppet out of town. And when he's gone--"

"I have been away from my daughter long enough," Hayley cut him off. "If you're afraid..."

"It's called being sensible. Until Freya can make enough cure with her werewolf hostage, Marcel can basically chew through our bloody throats."

"You're welcome to stay here, Kol," Morgana snapped. "But we're getting Klaus today."

She spun on her heel and walked away.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana thought it was a miracle no one had destroyed the bell tower. She'd thought it would've been one of the first places to be ransacked and decimated after the compound. Regardless, it was full of dust and random sections of broken glass.

"This is where you absolutely had to do your locator spell?" Kol asked.

"Well, when I first moved to New Orleans, I primed this space," Freya explained, spreading out a map. "Marked it with my magic, made it mine."

"This dusty bell tower may be your own, but this is Marcel's city, and we're nothing but targets."

Grendel hissed at him.

"All the more reason to let them get to work," Hayley said. "The sooner we find Klaus, the sooner we get out of here."

"It won't take long," Morgana assured them.

Freya sliced her finger and let the blood drip on to the map.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Everyone's out," Josh called. "Place is yours."

The locator spell had shown Klaus hidden underground, just as they predicted. There was a tunnel with an entrance hidden in Rousseau's they would use to get to him. Nothing like holding Josh hostage to get it done.

"See, wasn't that easier than us having to try to kill everyone?" Kol asked.

"Yeah, so what now?" Josh replied.

"Would you be so kind as to move that freezer unit, so that we might be able to access the tunnels?" Elijah phrased the order as a request.

Josh didn't move. Morgana shot him a look. He went to the freezer.

"Are you absolutely certain we're looking in the right place?" Kol asked.

"We know this tunnel runs the length of the city," Morgana replied. "Marcel must've carved out a section to serve as his personal dungeon."

"Ingenious and sadistic," Elijah remarked. "Well done, Marcel."

"Save the compliments for when he comes to kill us," Kol suggested. "Your flattery might give him pause."

Josh came back. "Okay, you're all set here. So, uh, good luck, break a leg, and I'll just be on my way."

He went to leave, but Kol stopped. "What, so you can rat us out to Marcel? Not bloody likely."

"Oh, just snap his neck," Freya said. "We'll be done by the time he wakes up."

"And if he wakes before that?" Elijah asked.

"Then kill him," Kol said.

"I'm right here, guys," Josh said.

"We're not killing him," Morgana and Hayley said at the same time.

"Yeah, you're probably right," Elijah agreed. "For some reason he's of value to Marcel. Kol, would you?"

"Happy to stay and have a drink and eviscerate anyone who tries to follow you," Kol replied.

"Then let's go," Morgana said. "We're wasting time here."

They entered the tunnels, leaving Kol and Josh behind.

It didn't take long for them to find the place. They could see Klaus through the chained iron gate. He was laying inside a boundary circle. Morgana froze, eyes wide, for a moment, until she heard the lock break. They rushed through, calling him. He didn't answer. He didn't even seem to notice their presence. Morgana and Freya touched the boundary's wall.

"The spell is strong," Freya said. "It's been reinforced over time, which means it's going to take time to break."

"We don't have time," Elijah replied.

No shit. Morgana held her hand out to Freya. "Brute force. We channel each other."

Freya took her hand and nodded. The knelt on the ground in front of the circle and started chanting.

"Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata."

"Freya," Elijah said. "Whatever happens, don't stop until Niklaus is free."

Morgana felt a breeze behind her as he vamp sped away. Marcel must be upstairs in the courtyard.

"Apne en vrata. Apne en vrata."

A gap formed in the circle.

"Klaus!" Freya called. "Can you hear me?"

"Nik, you need to wake up!" Morgana added. "We can't hold it much longer!"

The salt began sliding back into place, as if drawn together like magnets. Klaus still wasn't responding, the salt kept moving, and Morgana screamed.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
They all rushed out of a giant drainage pipe. Rebekah and Kol met them, and Rebekah hugged Klaus.

"You can hug him later," Freya said. "We need to leave."

"Marcel is right behind us," Morgana added.

Right as they were almost at the car, Marcel blocked their way. "Actually, I'm right here."

Morgana clenched her fists, trying to keep her fingertips from sparking. She didn't want to accidentally provoke him.

"You shouldn't have come back here," he continued. "None of you."

"That's what family does," Hayley replied. "We fight for each other."

"Yeah, so I've heard. Though it didn't really work out for me, did it?"

"Oh, for God's sake," Kol interjected. "You were never a Mikaelson. Get over it. Don't you have a city to run? Vampires to boot out of town?"

Marcel took a step toward him, but Rebekah stepped in between them. "If you want to kill one of us, you'll have to kill us all."

"Hey, don't push me, Rebekah," he snapped.

"Then get on with it. Let's end this once and for all."

"That's enough," Klaus interrupted. He stepped up next to her. "That's enough, Marcel, you've won. New Orleans was our city once. Now it's yours. For good."

"Is the great Klaus Mikaelson accepting defeat?" Marcel mocked. "Or is this all just another distraction?"

"Neither. In fact, despite your appalling behavior, I'm offering you a chance at peace. Attempt to kill us all, and you will be making a mistake. Any who survived would no doubt return to seek revenge, bringing our enemies back to your city in our wake. And even if you did manage to eliminate us all, one day my daughter would come for you, and her daughter after that, on and on for all your days. An endless cycle of violence you will bring upon yourself. Or...or we leave, and we never come back."

"After all that time buried in a hole, you still got some nerve. You stand there with a straight face and try to sell this like it's your choice. But here's the truth: I could kill all of you right now, and tonight I would sleep like a baby. Hell, that's what you would do. You've destroyed more people, taken more lives, ended more families than anyone who's ever lived, all because you can. But here's the other truth: despite being raised by you people, I am nothing like any of you. In fact, I'm proud as hell I'm not a Mikaelson. I beat you all without turning into you. And now you can live the rest of your lives knowing that the only reason that you exist is because I am showing you mercy."

Marcel gestured to their car. "Now go. And don't ever come back."

They hesitated, but when he didn't attack, they got in the car and left.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
It was late when they reached the safe house. Morgana sat on the edge of her bed, lost in thought.

She remembered what she'd said to Klaus, before he'd left to face Marcel and his crowd. _**"I love you.”**_ He hadn't responded because she'd asked him not to. But now that they'd gotten him back, what would happen? Did he even remember?

She might have ruined it all. But then, she'd thought the same thing that first Christmas, and everything had turned out fine. But that had been over a century ago.

A knock on the door startled her out of her thoughts. She quickly stood, then looked down to see if she'd remembered to put pants on. Luckily her long pajama bottoms were there. She went to the door and opened it.

Why did it seem like every time Morgana thought about Klaus he appeared?

"Hey," he said.

"H-hey," she repeated, then cursed herself for stuttering.

"May I come in?"

She stepped aside. He slowly entered the room, and she closed the door behind her. She bit her lip and turned. "I'm surprised you're not with Hope."

"She's asleep," he replied.

"Right."

God, why was she being so awkward? It was _Klaus_ , for heaven's sake. Which was exactly why she was being awkward.

"Are you alright?"

She blinked. "Yeah, just tired. Besides, I think I should be asking you that."

The corners of his mouth twitched. "Considering you're here, I am."

Heat flushed her cheeks. She gave a small smile and ducked her head; Lord, that was an old habit.

"For five years, there were only a small number of things keeping me sane," Klaus said, slowly walking up to her. "One of them was you. Your eyes, your smile, your voice, your stubbornness, your temper..."

Morgana let out a breathy chuckle. Her heart wouldn't stop pounding, even as he stopped right in front of her. He brought his hand up and toyed with the ends of her hair.

She swallowed. "Odd, isn't it? I've never had short hair before. Wasn't sure if I'd keep it or grow it back out."

"Why'd you cut it?" He whispered.

"Someone recognized me. They grabbed my ponytail and pulled, and it hurt and, when all was said and done with them, I was tired of that constantly happening. So I grabbed some scissors and cut it in a gas station restroom. Not my best work, but it turned out fine, I think."

"It suits you."

She smiled, cheeks growing warm again. His face grew serious. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," she whispered.

For some reason, her eyes watered. Morgana tried to hide it, but, of course, she couldn't. Klaus pulled her into a tight hug, and she latched on to him, burying her face in his shoulder. The tears never left her eyes; she didn't let them. They simply stood there, in each other's arms.


	3. Haunter of Ruins

Movement behind her woke Morgana. She forced her eyes open.

 

"Are you awake?" Klaus whispered.

She closed her eyes and hummed. "Depends what time it is."

She knew he was smiling. His lips brushed her bare shoulder. "I've been thinking about what you said."

He didn't specify; he didn't have to. They both knew exactly what he was talking about.

"I regret not telling you sooner," he continued. "But I'm telling you now. I love you too."

Her eyes flew open, and she swore her heart stopped for a moment. Morgana rolled over so she could see him.

"You do?"

"I do."

She cupped his cheek, softly stroking her thumb along his cheekbone, and kissed him. They rolled over so she was straddling him, his hands on her hips and hers in his hair, and when they pulled away they stayed like that for a minute before she laid back down with her head on his chest.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"What's the hold up?" Kol demanded.

They were all gathered on the porch, waiting for Hope to come out.

"Alright, we rescued Nik, we escaped mortal danger, why are we not on a private jet to Saint-Tropez?" He ripped a newspaper out of Elijah's hands. "You can catch up on the last five years when we're on our way. I can assure you you haven't missed much."

"Circumstances have changed," Elijah sighed. "We will leave here soon enough."

"We have our niece to consider," Rebekah added.

"Kol has a point," Freya argued. "We need to put an ocean between us and Marcel Gerard as soon as possible."

"We're not going anywhere today," Klaus insisted. "I want one day of peace with my daughter, before we uproot her."

"Any delay is a risk," Freya countered.

"One day. We're in the middle of nowhere," he added, raising his voice, "the house is cloaked, we weren't followed, and I'm not asking!"

The front door opened just as he finished. Hayley and Hope stepped out.

"Everybody, look who's awake," Hayley said.

Hope shyly looked around at her family. It was clear she was uncomfortable. Her voice was quiet when she spoke. "Hello."

"Hello," Klaus replied softly.

Hope looked away from him and up at Hayley. "Mom, can I go play in the garden?"

"Yeah, sure," Hayley agreed.

Hope quickly went down the porch steps and to a small table in the garden. Grendel ran after her and pushed his head against her hand. Morgana smiled at the sight.  
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Morgana's plan was this: sneak into the barn, free Keelin and cloak her. Now that they were all reunited, and they had the cure, it didn't seem right to continue to keep her hostage.

"What are you doing?" Hayley asked.

Shit. Morgana turned around and raised an eyebrow. "I'm going to free Keelin."

Hayley passed her and entered the barn. Morgana followed. Hayley grabbed a knife and cut Keelin's bonds.

"You're free to go," she said.

Keelin stood and went to leave, but Hayley grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "A few parting words: as long as you're alive, you will be hunted. You can't go back to your old life. You need to disappear."

She paused and shared a look with Morgana before turning back to Keelin. "Someone's coming. Go now."  
Keelin rushed past her and out the back window. Morgana whispered a cloaking spell. Freya walked in not a moment after. Anger spread across her face when she noticed Keelin was missing.

"Where is she?" She demanded.

"We had to, Freya," Hayley said.

"Had to what? Sentence my family to death? I'm going after her."

She turned to leave, but Hayley grabbed her and held her against the wall. "I don't think so."

"Move!"

Freya held out her hand and flung Hayley away. Morgana used Air and Earth to soften her landing.

"I can do much worse," Freya threatened. "Stay out of my way."

"Stop it, Freya," Morgana snapped. "We have plenty of venom for the cure. All we need to do is stay away from Marcel."

"Marcel could be handing out vials of his venom to anyone. We can't avoid a threat that could be everywhere."

"Keelin shouldn't suffer for that," Hayley insisted.

"Oh, now you're suddenly the arbiter of right and wrong?"

Thunder rumbled in the distance. Morgana took a deep breath.

"I've done plenty wrong in my life, Freya," Hayley growled. "But things are different now. I have a sweet little girl who's going around healing injured fireflies with her magic. If we're keeping someone captive in our barn, she's gonna have questions."

"Then tell her that the world's a bad place and that sometimes we have to do bad things to survive," Freya replied. "She'll be safer if she learns that early."

"It's not her job to keep herself safe! It's mine. It's ours. And that includes protecting her innocence."

"Look, Freya," Morgana interjected. "I'm sorry you had your innocence taken away when you were a child. But that does not make it okay to do it to another."

"She's a Mikaelson," Freya snapped. "She can live without her innocence. She can't live without her family. She's a Mikaelson, and the two of you--"

"Enough," Elijah cut her off. He was standing behind her. "Before you say something you'll regret."

"Thank you, brother," she grit out. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a wolf to hunt."

Morgana clenched her jaw, but before she could say or do anything, Elijah beat her to it. "You will let her go."

Freya stared at him before storming out. "Fine."  
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"Leaving already?" Morgana asked as Rebekah came out on to the porch.

"Five years trapped in an imaginary house with my siblings," Rebekah replied. "Can't really blame me for wanting to stretch my legs."

Morgana smiled. "Just remember that cell phones are a thing and you can use them."

They hugged.

"Take care, Bekah," Morgana said.

Rebekah started down the porch steps. "I will. And if Nik pisses you off," she added, "you know who to call."

Morgana laughed.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana entered the living room. Klaus was sitting in the armchair in front of the fireplace. She sat on the armrest. He was looking through Hope's sketchbook. She opened her mouth to say something, but the drawing Klaus turned to next made her freeze.

It was a dark circle, with eyes that seemed to glow. Klaus turned the page again, and a similar drawing was there, and on the next page, and the next.

"Why is she drawing an ouroboros?" Morgana breathed.

"Dad?"

They got off the chair and turned around. Hope was standing behind them in her pajamas. She looked confused. Klaus crouched in front of her.

"I think something's wrong," she said. "I had a dream about a bad man. He was hurting these kids, and I think he hurt me too. I feel dizzy, and my head hurts."

"Hayley!" Klaus called.

Hayley rushed into the room a moment later and kneeled next to him.

"Mom, I'm so cold," Hope said.

Hayley held her.

"Lay her down," Morgana instructed. "I'll get Freya and some blankets."

When she and Freya came back, Elijah had joined them. Hayley and Hope were on the couch together. Morgana spread the blankets on Hope. Freya kneeled on the floor next to them.

"She's never been sick, ever," Hayley said.

"This is a magical affliction," Freya muttered. "It feels...I don't know, it's hard to explain."

"Cold," Morgana said, crossing her arms. "It feels cold."

Hayley reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of folded up paper. She unfolded it and read it.

"It's from Vincent Griffith," she said. "He knows what's wrong with Hope, and he can cure her. But we have to go back to New Orleans."

Morgana furrowed her brow and glanced at Klaus. She wasn't expecting that.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana leaned against the wall, arms crossed. Grendel was perched on her shoulder. Klaus and Elijah were quietly arguing over who should go and who should stay.

"You spent half a decade as Marcel's prisoner," Elijah said. "Let me take Hope."

"Hayley is distraught," Klaus countered. "Stay and comfort her."

"If this is indeed a trap, if Marcel is intent on killing us, your daughter needs a father."

"We're all going," Hayley interrupted, entering the room. "She needs me, I need both of you. We're family, we stick together."

Klaus looked and Morgana and opened his mouth. She held up her finger. "Don't even try. I'm going too, obviously."

They all exchanged glances with each other. No one argued. So it was settled. Next stop: New Orleans.


	4. Keepers of the House

They rushed into the compound. It really had deteriorated over the past few years.

"Our home," Klaus said. "Once the pride of our family, now a flophouse."

"Indeed, the mighty have fallen," Elijah agreed.

"Where's Vincent?" Hayley asked. She laid Hope down on the ground and fixed her blankets.

"Right here." He was in the doorway. "Kept my word. Now the only question is whether or not you guys are gonna keep yours. As soon as I'm finished healing your kid, you gotta leave the city."

"Well, we're not gonna stay, are we?" Klaus snapped. "Your city has lost its charm."

"What he means to say," Hayley interrupted, "is that we're very grateful. Just help her and we'll leave."

"Just give us what we need and we will do so happily," Elijah agreed.

Morgana chewed her thumbnail. Vincent went and knelt in front of Hope.

"Nettoyer timoun sa a. Nettoyer timoun sa a. Nettoyer timoun sa a. Nettoyer timoun sa a. Nettoyer timoun sa a. Nettoyer timoun sa a."

There was a pause. Hope looked at Hayley. "Mom?"

Vincent stood. "That's it. Your little girl's purified."

He began leaving.

"Thank you," Klaus said.

"Now look, the only gratitude I need from any of you is seeing you leave the city," Vincent replied.

Something wasn't right. Morgana wasn't sure what, but something was still off.

"Go see your daddy," Hayley told Hope.

Hope turned and began walking to Klaus. Suddenly a crow dropped dead from the sky, and then another, and another, until there was a circle of dead crows around Hope. Before the last crow fell, Hayley rushed to Hope and grabbed her.

"What the he--what is this?" Morgana breathed.

"I don't know," Vincent replied, just as shocked as the rest of them.

"Mom, can you hear that?" Hope asked. "It's whispers. Saying a name, over and over. Kre Nah Han, Kre Nah Han."

"Vincent, what is that?" Hayley asked.

"It's a nearly forgotten dialect," Vincent replied. "It's Creole. It means The Hollow. The Hollow is coming."  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana shoved her hands in her pockets to hide the shaking. She had no idea what or who the Hollow was, but she was terrified. Especially for Hope, who was lying in bed upstairs, still sick. Morgana looked up as Hayley came back.

"How is she?" Klaus asked.

"The fever's back," Hayley replied. "But she's not in any pain. She's asking for you."

"Well, make an excuse. I'd rather my daughter not know I've gone off to murder witches."

"That won't help," Morgana sighed.

"And how would you have me respond? Should I delegate my child's safety to someone else?"

"Let me see what I can do," Elijah said.

"I'll go with you," Morgana said.

"And I will handle Marcel," Hayley said. "Out of the four of us, I win Most Likely Not To Get Killed On Arrival. Whatever we're up against, it's as much his problem as it is ours."

"Leaving me to do what, exactly?" Klaus demanded.

"Stay here and protect our daughter," Hayley replied. "Do not let anything or anyone near her."

She went to leave. Morgana turned to Klaus.

"We'll figure something out," she promised, and kissed his cheek. He squeezed her hand and went upstairs.

She reached up and scratched Grendel's chin. "Stay and look after them, please?"

He sighed, but jumped down. He rubbed himself against her legs and went upstairs. Morgana joined Elijah.  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"...a spirit called the Hollow," Vincent was saying. "Now, this thing is dark, it's angry, it's very powerful."

"It is a force my family and I are here to erase," Elijah added.

Everyone in the church turned to look at him.

"Now, kindly excuse us, please," he continued. "We have much to discuss."

Everyone except Vincent got up and left.

"So, now that we've dispensed with the needless hysteria," Elijah said.

"I got a lot on my plate, Elijah, without whatever trouble you're trying to bring my way."

Elijah went up to the altar. "You need us. And fortunately, we have a history of removing anything undesirable from New Orleans."

"I'm probably one of the things that's on your list. So I reckon it's best for me to work alone."

"Oh, it's not an offer. Children's lives are at risk."

Vincent raised his voice. "You care about children's lives at risk? What about Davina Claire, Elijah?"

Morgana looked away. The stained glass windows did little to staunch the sudden reminder of her guilt.

"So you can only see me as some kind of merciless butcher," Elijah said.

"Yes, I do," Vincent replied.

"I'll be whatever you want me to be, Vincent Griffith. I'll be the very devil himself, but make no mistake. I would violate everything under the sacred sun in the name of rescuing my niece. And right now, according to you, you are facing two evils. Wouldn't it be nice to have one of those by your side?"

Vincent hesitated. "We're gonna do this my way."

"Beautiful. Your way it is."  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Vincent poured ashes into the bowl. Candles surrounded them.

"And who might this be?" Elijah asked.

"These are the ashes of a witch who lost his way," Vincent replied. "And it might just be the key to helping us find ours. This thing, um, the Hollow, its magic has a very unique signature. I felt it on this witch the other day when Marcel and I took him out, so if I can trace that energy back to its source..."

"It'll lead us straight to the rest of them," Morgana finished.

Vincent nodded.

"So this thing which haunts my niece," Elijah said. "Has it spoken to you?"

"It's more like, um, a broadcast," Vincent replied. "And I was able to shut it out, but a lot of people have a harder time doing that."

"Like your wife?"

Vincent turned to them. "You know, there's a difference between what we project and what we have inside of our hearts, what we try to hide inside of our hearts, right? Now that thing, it took everything that's dark and twisted inside of me and used it against me. It used it against my wife and it ended up taking everything that I've ever loved away from me."

Morgana crossed her arms.

"So then you have every reason to want to remove it from this Earth," Elijah said.

"Yeah," Vincent agreed. "But let's say we run into that thing today, Elijah. It's gonna take everything that you wanna keep buried, it's going to use that and make you do exactly what it wants you to do. And that's what makes you a liability to the very niece that we're all trying to protect."

Morgana shifted. "As much as I enjoy a good warning, I think it's best we get on with this, shall we?"

She went to the table and grabbed the sage. She lit it with Fire and took Vincent's hand.

"Chèche le virtute. Chèche le virtute. Chèche le virtute. Chèche le virtute."

Visions flashed in Morgana's mind. Children in an ambulance. Will Kinney driving it. He was talking to someone dressed in some kind of ceremonial garb. Oh no. No, no, no, what did he get himself into?

They pulled away and shared a look of mutual horror.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
The plan had been to try and talk to Will at the St. James. As soon as he pulled his gun out, however, the plan changed.

"The Hollow rewards those who are loyal," he was saying. "Maybe if you did what it asked you to do, things might be different. For me. For Cami. For all of us."

Morgana didn't hear what anyone said next. As soon as Will said Cami's name, used her as a defense to his actions, a rage she'd only experienced a few times in her life burst in Morgana's chest. Without thinking, she called on Fire and Air and came out of her hiding place. She used Fire to turn the gun red hot, and when he dropped it with a scream she flung him back and into the wall with Air.

She held him down with it and knelt next to him. "Never use Cami as some of kind of defense for your actions. Or I will do much, much worse to you, and enjoy it." She cocked her head. "Now, shall we start?"

She forced Will up with Air and dropped him in a chair. They tied him to it, and Elijah tried entering his mind...for the better part of an hour.

"Alright, someone cast a spell to block his mind against your vampire tricks," Vincent said. "I can break that, Elijah, it's just gonna take me a little bit of time."

"That's a luxury we don't have," Elijah argued.

"Look, Elijah, I'm not gonna let you torture him, alright? He's my friend, and he's just as much of a victim as all those kids."

"You have five minutes."

Morgana cracked her knuckles. "If it makes you feel any better, two witches equal double the power and faster work."

He sat down and pulled out a pocket watch. She rolled her eyes and got to work.

"Briser le bouclier. Briser le bouclier. Briser le bouclier. Briser le bouclier."

"Time's up," Elijah announced.

Morgana grit her teeth.

"Hold on, Elijah!" Vincent snapped. "And because a witch told me that I'm the one who gave this thing breath. Now I don't know what I did to let it into this world, but I know I ain't just gonna let it take him out."

Morgana sent Elijah a look.

"Finish it," he said.

She and Vincent turned back to Will. "Marquer nom sa à. Marquer nom sa à."

Suddenly Will broke free and pulled out a talisman. He held it out to Elijah, and he was thrown back into the wall. Then he used it on Morgana, and just before her shield went up she was thrown back into a pile of chairs. She heard another crash and assumed Vincent had been thrown as well. She caught her breath and registered stinging on her cheek. She felt it, and some blood came off on her fingers. Not the worst that could happen.

"Morgana!" Elijah called.

She stuck her hand up. "Here!"

The three of them worked together to move the chairs that had fallen on top of her when she crashed. Elijah pulled her up, and she dusted off her pants.

"On the bright side, we tagged him with magic," she said. "Now let's go get those kids."  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
They were making their way through the bayou.

"Assume you told everyone to be on their best behavior?" Vincent asked.

"Oh, I told them," Elijah replied. "Now whether or not they'll be obedient is another thing altogether."

Morgana snorted just as Klaus joined them.

"Where's Hope?" Elijah asked.

"Freya's with her now," Klaus replied. "She's fighting it. Whatever it is."

"The kids are attached to that spell," Vincent said. "If we save the kids, we save your little girl."

Marcel and Hayley joined them.

"And the sooner you all can be on your way," Marcel added.

"Clearly we're skipping all the hugs and hellos," Hayley said. "Vincent?"

"Trail leads off this way," Vincent said, gesturing off to the right. "So I guess we, uh, follow the bread crumbs."

"Tactless savages holding a ghost-raising rave," Klaus said. "Best make short work of them. I say we--"

"We split up," Marcel interrupted. "Klaus, you're with me. I'm not letting you out of my sight. Anybody got a problem with that, I don't give a damn."

He started off. Klaus rolled his eyes and followed. Morgana shared a look with Hayley and Elijah and followed them.

"I assume you embark upon this journey out of the kindness of your heart," Klaus mocked.

"There are kids in trouble," Marcel replied. "Yours included."

"It's a bit late for you to suddenly care about my child, given you left her fatherless for five years."

"Well, speaking from experience, I figured I was doing her a favor."

"Careful, lest your insults mar an already tentative peace."

"Alright, listen, I don't care about our peace, alright? I care about finding these missing kids and wiping out the messed-up people who took them. Root out the problems, make them go away. That's what you do when you're the king."

"All I see is a petulant prince."

"Always with the insults. You never do learn."

"On the contrary. My time in your dungeon clarified my priorities. My concerns are with my child. And as for you, I can imagine no better revenge than leaving you to the endless struggle to prove yourself my better. You're welcome, by the way."

"For the love of God," Morgana interrupted, "would you two shut up already! At this rate they'll hear us coming because neither of you can bite your tongues long enough to sneak around properly."

She sped up just enough to get ahead of them. They would only listen for a few minutes before starting up again, and she didn't want to hear it.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
It was dark by the time they found them. Will was already there, talking to the same man as before.

"Now that you've returned, brother," the man was saying, "you may join us as we claim our power. Our rightful place. And lay waste to all who would deny our master. Are you prepared to prove your loyalty to the Hollow?"

"I know what I have to do," Will replied. "I'm not afraid."

"We should begin."

"Enough with this circus of sadists," Klaus hissed.

He broke off a tree branch and threw it at the man. It went through his neck. The rest of the Hollow's followers began to panic and ran. The others ran for the children. Will began the ritual.

"Will!" Vincent called. "Come on, man, it's over!"

"No, Vince," Will replied. "It's only just begun."

Klaus vamp sped over to him and grabbed him by the neck.

"You can't stop what's coming," Will said.

Klaus broke his neck and tossed him aside.

“ _No!_ " Vincent shouted.

Marcel, who was only a foot away, handed the last child to Morgana. She ran into the woods and laid them down with the others. When she ran back out, a circle of fire was around Klaus and Marcel. She tried to get through, but she hit a barrier. She called on Fire, but it was no use. Nothing could get through it.

"Oh, man, we got this all wrong," Vincent said. "They wanted us here."

"Why?" Elijah asked.

"They want to channel your power," Morgana breathed. "To anchor the Hollow to this world."

Panic bubbled in her chest. They went back into the woods and checked on the kids.

"Okay, they're alive," Vincent said. "These kids are linked to that ritual. We can't free Marcel and Klaus unless we break the spell."

"How do we stop this?" Elijah asked.

"I don't know! It's a sacrificial ritual, I can't break it unless I kill one of the kids."

"Absolutely not," Morgana said

"There has to be another way," Hayley agreed.

"Wait, wait," Morgana said, closing her eyes in concentration. "The children are powering the ritual, but there could be a loophole."  
She opened them and looked at Vincent. "Link it to me."

"Are you suggesting we take your life?" Elijah asked.

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm suggesting. Don't give me that _damn_ look," she snapped. "I've survived poison, broken necks, slit throats and blades through my heart. I've bled out and been shot at. Just break my neck, and I will be _fine_. There is no time to argue, so don't even bother."

Morgana took Vincent's hand. "Do it."

He looked unsure, but listened. "Mare. Mare leurs. Mare leurs esprits. Mare leurs esprits. Mare leurs esprits. Mare leurs esprits. Mare leurs esprits. Do it now!"

Hands grabbed Morgana's head, and the world went black.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
When she came to, Morgana was laying on a bed. Grendel was curled up next to her. She ruffled his fur. He lifted his head up and looked her over. He must've deemed her alright, because he put his head back down and went back to sleep. She smiled and sat up. She rolled her neck slowly, wincing, and rubbed it.

"Sleeping Beauty has awoken," Klaus said.

Morgana smiled. It quickly dropped, though, when she remembered what had happened. "Did it work?"

He nodded. "Everyone's fine now."

She sighed in relief and fell back against the pillows. He laid next to her. She rolled over on to her side.

"How's your neck?" He asked.

"Stiff," she replied.

He lifted his arm, and she scooted closer until she was cuddled up against him, listening to his heartbeat. He started playing with her hair. She closed her eyes, only meaning to for a moment, but the moment turned into several moments, and then she was asleep.


	5. I Hear You Knocking

As soon as she learned Klaus was staying behind, Morgana _knew_ something was off. He said he wanted to make sure Hope was truly safe; okay, made sense. She really didn't have a reason to suspect anything...damn her gut feelings, especially when they were right.

She was at the bell tower with Freya when Klaus came by. He glanced at and she just knew she was right. She raised an eyebrow, and he sighed.

"You're not leaving, are you," he said.

"You can bet your sweet ass I'm not," she replied.

He shot her a smirk. "You think my ass is sweet?"

It was her turn to smirk. Before she could reply, though, Freya cleared her throat. Oh God, Morgana had forgotten she was there. Heat flushed her cheeks. The mood plummeted, however, at Klaus' next words.

"I think the Hollow is possessing me."

Her heart dropped. He explained that he was seeing and hearing Mikael, who was trying to get him to kill Marcel.

Freya got out a bowl and a knife, and he cut his hand and let the blood drip into the bowl.

"Tell me again what happened at this ritual," she said.

"I fought evil, and I saved children," he replied. "I should be given a medal. Instead I've been infected by some depraved ghost."

"Well, I know purging spells and cleansing rituals, so I can fix this," Freya said.

"Marcel was in the circle with you," Morgana reminded him.

"In your visions, our father is goading you to kill your enemy," Freya said. "If Marcel has seen something similar..."

"Then we're all on the chopping block," Klaus finished.

"Right, you both need to be purified," Morgana said.

"No, not yet," Klaus argued. "If the Hollow can look into me, then I can look back at it, find out what it is, what it wants."

"Oh, so you'll just continue to let this thing possess you and try to make you do God knows what?" She snapped.

"This thing came after Hope!"

She glared at him, but didn't say anything. Freya glanced between them.

"We'll give you an hour," she said. "And something else." She picked up a dagger. "The means to kill the unkillable king of New Orleans. If Marcel comes after you, use this."

Klaus shot her an annoyed look.

"Oh, you're mad I kept a secret from you? Fine. Chastise me once you've made it through the day."

After a moment, he took the dagger and left. Morgana dragged a hand down her face and then ran it through her hair.

"How the _hell_ did you manage to make that?" She asked, then held up a finger. "Actually, never mind, I don't wanna know."  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana had gone off to get some supplies (read: her candles), and was using this opportunity to try and calm down. When her phone buzzed in her pocket, she knew that time had been cut short.

"Hello?"

"If we don't find Klaus now, they're going to kill each other," Freya said.

"On my way."

Morgana did a tracing spell and, once she found Klaus, called on Air and flew as fast as she could.

She met Freya at an old abandoned house. Freya was holding a small bag. They went up the porch steps, and hit a barrier when they tried to go inside. They held hands and began chanting.

"Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most."

Morgana flinched. They stopped the spell. She shared a glance with Freya and wiped her nose. They'd both gotten nosebleeds. Elijah appeared next to Morgana and offered his hand.

"Need a hand?" He asked.

She took it, and they tried again.

"Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most. Repo oma dal most."

The door burst open, and they ran in. Marcel had Klaus pinned against the wall. Elijah grabbed Marcel and yanked him away. Marcel went for Elijah, but Klaus broke his neck.

A blue light came from behind them. They turned and saw a shadowy figure in the middle of the light. It had no features, only a pair of eyes and glowing hands.

" _Leave my family alone!_ " Freya shouted.

She threw a bottle at the figure. It hit it and exploded. The thing screamed a sharp, high-pitched wail, and Morgana covered her ears and cursed. The screaming stopped, and the light disappeared. She uncovered her ears. It was gone.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Elijah offered the bottle of liquor to Klaus.

"I prefer my mind remain unaltered for the time being," Klaus said.

"Weird, I feel the exact opposite," Elijah replied.

Freya entered the room. "Rest easy, brother. My spells have Marcel bound and cloaked."

"And there is no trace of the Hollow's magic in either of you," Morgana added.

"So where has it gone?" Elijah asked.

"It's a ghost," Morgana replied. "It could be anywhere."

"And since we know that it still wants to sacrifice something powerful, we have to be prepared," Freya said.

She reached for the dagger sat on the table. Klaus grabbed her hand. "I think I'll hold on to it for now."

"This wasn't a gift. Today proved Marcel's a threat, whether used as a sacrifice or possessed."

"Regardless--"

"What good is having a weapon if you won't use it?"

"Niklaus, give it to her," Elijah said.

Klaus hesitated, but he let Freya have the dagger. "Having a monopoly of power makes you a target, sister. Remember that."

Freya left the room. Morgana pushed off the wall.

"I'm going to bed. And by the way," she pointed at Klaus, "the next time you're possessed, we're not waiting. Goodnight."


	6. Bag of Cobras

Decorations were being set up all over the compound. Marcel was in a dungeon, no one else knew where he was, so apparently a party was in order.

"You do realize that everyone hates you?" Hayley asked.

"But they love Marcel," Klaus replied. "And as the invite states, he is the co-host. Tonight we celebrate our truce."

"So you're throwing a fake party in honor of a fake truce, and your guest of honor is in a dungeon?"

Morgana snorted.

"Marcel's attendance would only complicate matters," Klaus said as he came down the stairs. "Besides, I'll have my hands full weeding out those in league with the Hollow."

"Have fun with that. Hope's with Mary. I'm just looking for Freya."

"What do you need of her?"

"Just a favor."

"I think she's at Rousseau's," Morgana said. "I'll come with."

Klaus caught her wrist as she passed. She gestured to Hayley to keep going, and turned to him.

"I thought you were staying for the party?" He asked.

"I'll be back in time," she promised.

She leaned in to whisper in his ear. "Besides, I wouldn't want to miss out on showing you my dress."

She kissed his cheek and hurried after Hayley, not missing the devilish grin he gave her.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana finished her drink in record time. Hayley waved her over.

"I learned about the man who killed my parents," Hayley said. "He was connected to the Hollow. I was just a baby when they were killed, I don't remember it, but I do know where they were killed. I was hoping maybe with your spells, and your witchcraft..."

"You want us to do a reading," Freya finished.

"Hayley, violent death has a very specific energy," Morgana warned. "Whatever there could be to see, you probably won't like it."

"I don't think I have a choice," Hayley replied.

Morgana shared a look with Freya. Looks like they might be a little late to the party after all.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
By the time they found the house, night had fallen. The darkness made the house appear to be looming in front of them, even with their flashlights. Grendel wasn't too fond of it.

The inside was even worse. What used to be a family home was now a decrepit reminder of what could have been.

"Are you positive this will work?" Hayley asked, looking around.

"I can feel the energy that was trapped in here," Freya replied. "So yeah, it'll work."

"Are you sure you want to?" Morgana asked.

Hayley turned to them. "I've always wondered what my parents might've been like, what they might've thought of me. Missing these people I never even knew. But if this can help us fight the thing that came after my daughter, then let's get it over and done with."

Morgana and Freya set up a salt circle big enough to surround the three of them. Morgana placed her four element candles at their usual points just outside it, and Freya lit a couple normal candles in the center. They sat down around the candles inside the circle and joined hands.

"You ready?" Freya asked.

Hayley nodded, and Morgana closed her eyes and began chanting with Freya.

"Ostende det siste. Ostende det siste. Ostende det siste. Ostende det siste. Ostende det siste. Ostende det siste. Ostende det siste. Ostende det siste."

If the energy alone hadn't been enough to tell how badly things had ended in this house, the visions of the events that had left this energy painted a vivid picture.

Hayley, as a baby, crying in her crib. Her father arguing with a man. Her mother lingering in a doorway, watching them. The man slashed her father's throat. Her mother rushed the man, but he slit her throat as well. She dropped, already dead, but her father managed to drop something in between the floor boards before he, too, bled out.

Morgana was ripped out of the vision, and gasped. Her attention immediately went to Hayley. Tears were leaking down her face, and she got up and moved to a different spot in the house. She kneeled down and ripped open the floor. She reached in, pulled something out and stood. It was a key.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
The key lead them to a storage unit. Hayley unlocked one of them and tried to lift the door, but it wouldn't budge. "What the hell?"

"Sealed with a spell," Morgana said.

She held her hand out to the door and closed her eyes. She forced the magic away, and lifted the door. It only opened part of the way, so the three of them ducked low to get in.

Furniture and boxes were scattered everywhere. One was labeled "Andrea's Nursery."

Hayley turned to them. "I think I need to do this part alone."

Looking around, Morgana completely understood. She and Freya left and headed back to the compound.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana sipped her champagne, watching the crowd from the second floor. She spotted Klaus dancing with a rather beautiful woman--God, wasn't that the same woman who had been auctioning off the white oak?

Something clenched in her gut, and she took another drink. She debated calling Air to eavesdrop, but decided against it. Too many witches who would sense it.

Klaus stepped away from the woman and headed for the exit. Morgana finished her champagne and followed. They went outside and around to the back of the compound, where Vincent was magically holding two men against the wall.

"Gentlemen," Klaus greeted, approaching. Morgana lingered back. "Sofya says you've come to kill me. It's a good thing one isn't judged by the competence of one's enemies. I'd be rather insulted."

So that was her name. Morgana joined them, holding back her grin at Klaus' expression. She stopped next to him and turned to the men.

"I was you once," Vincent said. "Thought the Hollow was gonna give me all sorts of power. And it ended up taking away everything that I've ever loved. It took away my family, took away my wife. It left me with absolutely nothing."

He gestured to Klaus. "Now, I hate vampires. I hate Klaus Mikaelson more than any of them. And I'm willing to stand beside him against that thing that you call your master. Now that right there should show you just how bad your master actually is."

Klaus glanced at him. "I'm gonna take that as a compliment. Gentlemen, I ought to flay the skin from your bones. But these are uncommon times, are they not? And they call for uncommon mercies. You and your brethren have a choice: forsake the Hollow, or die by its side. Either way is fine with me."  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
The men had made their choice. Morgana, Klaus and Vincent had gone back to the party afterwards. Vincent had disappeared into the crowd, and Morgana had pulled Klaus on to the dance floor.

"Sofya has a rather interesting bracelet," she remarked. "Something tells me it's not Tiffani."

He chuckled. "She claims it's from a rose bush created from Marcel's blood and the Hollow's power."

She blanched. "Thank God she didn't test it on you."

"Her heart would be in my hand before that could happen. Besides, I'll have all her weapons by the end of the night."

"Ladies and gentlemen."

They stopped dancing and looked up. Elijah was holding a man over the railing by the neck.

"We have here an errand boy of the Hollow," he said. "A disciple of the very darkness that threatens to devour our city, your loved ones, and mine. Now, whether or not you despise us, my family will do everything in its power to remove this scourge from New Orleans."

He stuck his hand in the man's chest and ripped his heart out. He dropped the body and the heart to the floor. "I recommend you do the same. Or else."

Morgana stared at the body. Son of a bitch.  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
As much as she enjoyed dressing up, Morgana loved her sweatpants even more. As soon as all the guests had cleared out, she'd gone upstairs to change. Now only the decorations remained in the courtyard, and even those would be gone by morning.

The bloodstain on the ground, though, might take a bit longer to get rid of.

"Did you retrieve all of the weapons?" Elijah asked.

"Well, I don't know," Klaus replied. "Let's confirm with Dominic, shall we? Oh wait, we can't. His corpse is currently burning in a dumpster! I try to avoid bloodshed, and you become the town executioner."

"Let me handle this."

"Why exactly should I do that?"

"Hope."

"You see, it's precisely because of her I have to assert my involvement. So, brother, tell me what you know."

"This thing wants to be reborn. This morning Vincent said that whenever it resurfaces, it does so in four distinct locations. I can't tell why."

Footsteps made them look to the entrance. Hayley walked in. She was holding something.

"It's looking for something," she said. "Four things, by the sound of it. And I'm pretty sure that I have one of them. My parents were killed protecting this from one of the Hollow's followers."

She held up the object. It looked old and worn, and suspiciously like...

"Wonderful," Morgana said. "The Hollow wants to come back to life and its followers are looking for its remains. You found its jaw."

"Lucky me," Hayley replied. "Who has the other three?"

"Dominic," Elijah said. "Dominic said that he had found something here."

"What, there's just, like, a bag of bones laying around that I didn't know about?" Hayley scoffed.

"No," Klaus replied. "But there is one. Dominic's death was a distraction."

"They used our own deception against us," Elijah said.

"This thing has followers everywhere," Hayley added. "They've infiltrated the entire city. If they get the other bones before we do..."

"Then they'll raise the Hollow, and it will come for us all," Morgana finished.

They all looked at each other. Morgana shifted as the familiar feeling of dread pooled in her stomach.


	7. High Water and a Devil's Daughter

With no idea on who was to be trusted, an evil being wanting to be resurrected, and now the Tunde blade missing, it only made sense the compound be put on lockdown until further notice.

And let's not forget that Dominic--the witch Elijah killed at the party--was still alive.

Elijah went off on an "errand." Morgana and Freya went on theirs. Klaus and Hayley stayed behind with Hope. He wasn't terribly thrilled with that. Morgana didn't blame him.

She convinced Grendel to stay behind as well. How, she had no idea.

"What exactly are we doing?" Morgana asked.

"You'll see," Freya replied.

"You're gonna have to do a little better than that, Freya."

They entered Rousseau's and headed to the kitchen. Josh was setting down a box of produce on the counter. Morgana had flashbacks of sitting on that counter while Sophie cooked.

She shook her head. Now was not the time for memories.

"We need a vampire to do a spell," Freya said. "You just volunteered."

Josh made a face. "Right. So let's see, you threw my best friend into a supernatural hellworld, but sure. Let me bend over backwards and do you a favor."

"Look, we're up against a powerful, evil spirit with powerful, evil followers who's hell-bent on sacrificing my brother, as well as your dear friend, Marcel. So, are you helping or are you whining?"

"If I say no, your brothers are gonna do something totally uncool with my entrails."

"They don't know we're here," Morgana sighed.

"We need you to help us set a trap," Freya said. "We get to deal with Dominic on my terms, you get to help me keep Marcel breathing. So you in?"  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"You couldn't have just _told me_ this was what we were doing?" Morgana asked. "You had to keep a secret for dramatics?"

Freya shrugged as Josh kneeled in front of her. Morgana watched as she held her hand over his head and started chanting.

"Mutare seu rosto. Mutare seu rosto. Mutare seu rosto. Mutare seu rosto. Mutare seu rosto. Mutare seu rosto."

Josh collapsed. After a moment, he slowly rose as Marcel.

"I doubt the spell broke your tongue, Josh," Morgana said worriedly. "Say something."

"I'm just super overwhelmed by the sheer number of jokes I could make about being in this body," he said. "It is an embarrassment of really inappropriate riches."

She snorted.

"Okay, well, when you're done entertaining yourself," Freya said, "I'd love to get back to the life or death situation we're dealing with."

Josh nodded. "Right."

Freya gestured to the large wooden circle on the floor behind him. "Thank you. Lay down in the circle. Now the second Dominic sets foot in the circle, you get the hell out. Use every bit of vamp speed you got, okay? He can't do magic in the circle, but he does have a weapon strong enough to kill an Original."

"Awesome." He laid down in the circle. "Hey, I was just thinking, let's never hang out again. Like, ever."

Fair enough.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana swore her heart pounded loud enough to be heard by those without supernatural hearing. The sun had set, and, judging by the sounds, Dominic had arrived.

She heard him mutter a spell. She shared a look with Freya. They both knew Josh had been found out. They rushed out of their hiding place, taking out the few guards Dominic had brought with him. Freya brought down the second circle they'd hung from the ceiling over Dominic.

"What is this?!" He demanded.

"That's a shame," Josh said. "Things do not look good for you."

"You imbecile," Dominic spat. "You have no idea what you're dealing with."

"A bit of bluster wrapped up in a protection spell," Freya replied.

"Terribly unimpressive," Morgana tutted.

She and Freya spent the next half hour breaking down each of the Dominic's protection spells. When they finally got through the last one, Freya turned to Josh.

"You should leave," she said.

"Uh, I live here," he shot back. "Why don't you two just kill the guy and then help me clean up the two bodies that are stashed in my bathroom?"

Freya didn't budge. Morgana raised an eyebrow.

"Look, I'm not gonna leave the two of you alone in here with the Hollow's High Priest of Doom."

"Why?" Freya asked. "We're not friends. I'm the evil witch who hurt Davina and still has Marcel captive, remember?"

Well damn.

Morgana gave Josh an apologetic look as he left. She and Freya turned back to Dominic.

"Let me guess," he said. "You got questions."

"As I understand it, your overlord needs to collect four of her bones to be reborn," Freya replied. "One of which, the Tunde blade, you stole from my home. Where are the others?"

"As long as I'm the only one with the answers, you can't kill me."

Morgana made a fist. He groaned and bent over.

"Magical heart attack," she said. "Almost bad enough to kill you. So let's try this again: where are the bones?"

"I don't know," he insisted.

"If you won't give us what we want, then we'll just take it," Morgana warned.

She took Freya's hand. "Dic mihi, hva du vet."

Dominic's thoughts ran through their minds. _Apisi._

They stopped and let go.

"Apisi," Morgana repeated. "What does it mean?"

Dominic didn't respond.

"Tell us," she growled. "Or we'll throw you aside and ask someone more cooperative."

"The Apisi," he finally said. "They were guardians who protected the bones in ancient times. It means nothing now. I don't have the information you want."

"Well, then, we're done here," Freya said.

She raised her hand.

" _Wait!_ " Dominic pleaded. "I do know one thing. I know where the Malraux wolf is right now. Keelin."

Morgana blanched and glanced at Freya. She did not want to be on the other side of the murderous rage Freya was about to unleash.

"You're lying," she hissed. "You don't know anything about her."

"I know she's important to you. And I know the way you look at her from across a crowded room. I was less than amused by your little boundary spell, so I sent my friends with instructions to kill your wolf friend. They're in the Ninth Ward now. St. Theodora's Health Clinic."

He shrugged. "Honestly, she might be dead already. But if you kill me, then you'll never find out where her body is."

Morgana burned him, then tore out of the loft as fast as she could. She flew all the way to the clinic, but there was no sign of Keelin or Dominic's "friends."

So she did the only other thing she could think of and flew to Rousseau's. She landed right next to Keelin.

"Oh my God," Keelin exclaimed. "Did you just--"

"Yes," Morgana cut her off. "I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess that, given the blood on your face, you're in better shape than the other guys?"

Keelin nodded.

"Okay, now this might sound strange, but you're gonna want to hold on, don't look down, and _do not_ let go, because we need to move, and this is the fastest way to do it."

Morgana wrapped her arms around Keelin and called on Air. Keelin screamed as they shot off into the sky.

When they got to the loft, Dominic was gone. Freya was across the room. As they got closer, they both realized she was lying there dead.

"Oh, God," Morgana choked.

Keelin wasted no time in tying her hair back and starting CPR. Morgana was frozen in shock, and could only stare, heart pounding. Her eyes began to burn the more time that passed.

Freya gasped and sat up. Keelin helped her up. Morgana bent over and took a few deep breaths, hands on her knees.

Wait.

If Freya died, then the boundary spell she'd placed on the compound would have broken.

_Shit._

Morgana straightened and shared a look with Freya.

"The boundary spell," Morgana said.

"We have to go," Freya agreed.

"No, you can't," Keelin argued.

Morgana was inclined to agree with her. "I'm going ahead. I can't fly both of you at the same time, and we don't have time to argue."

She took off before either of them said anything.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Grendel was waiting beside Hayley when Morgana arrived at the compound. Hayley was unconscious, and when Morgana checked she found her neck was broken.

"Klaus!" She called. "Hope!"

No response. Grendel didn't seem terribly bothered. She wasn't sure if that was supposed to make her feel better. It didn't.

She turned in a circle, surveying the courtyard and calling for Klaus and Hope again. She noticed the blood and a few dead bodies. Looks like Dominic had been taken care of, given that his head had been separated from his body. Hopefully he'll stay dead this time.

Grendel meowed from behind her. Morgana turned and saw him standing by the exit. He led her to an alley. She breathed a sigh of relief.

Klaus and Hope were on the sidewalk. Morgana raised an eyebrow when she noticed Marcel standing a few feet away from them. None of them noticed her or Grendel, even as they went back to the compound.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana smiled to herself. If her mother saw how she was sitting right now--slouched low, legs stretched out--Morgana would get a lecture that would last an hour, at least.

"What's on your mind?"

She looked up. Klaus was leaning against the door frame, arms crossed. She rested her head against her fist.

"If my mother could see how I'm sitting on this couch, she'd have a conniption," she mused.

He chuckled and sat next to her.

"'Close your legs, Morgana,'" she continued. "'Sit up straight. A lady sits properly when others are around. But if she's alone, she may sit however she pleases.'"

"Stern woman," he said.

"She had to deal with me and my siblings. She had to be. We were little devils."

A few minutes of comfortable silence passed.

"I heard you had fun with a resurrected witch," Klaus said.

Morgana snorted. "Magical heart attacks are only fun if you're on the giving side. Dominic had the name of a werewolf bloodline," she added. "Apisi. They guarded one of the bones. Freya tracked down the last of them. The last member died a few years ago under strange circumstances."

"Where were they killed?"

"Mystic Falls."

"Of course."

"Seems like the rest of the bones are probably there as well."

He sighed. "Wonderful."

She patted his arm. Grendel, laying on top of the backrest, swished his tail in Klaus' face. Morgana laughed as Klaus sputtered.


	8. Voodoo In My Blood

"I know you have to go, but that doesn't mean I like it," Morgana said. “Or trust it. God only knows what the Ancestors want, or who you’ll even be talking to.”

"I know, love," Klaus replied. 

He brushed the back of his hand against her cheek. She took it and held it there. "Just try not to piss anyone off."

"No promises. In the meantime, I'd like for you to go with Elijah and Marcel to retrieve one of the bones."

She smirked. "Because no one trusts the two of them alone together or because I'll be antsy without something to do?"

"Two birds, one stone."

She released his hand as he dropped it. He kissed her cheek and started walking away. "I'll see you tonight."

"Be careful," she called after him, crossing her arms.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Great, two babysitters," Marcel complained.

"Quit your bitching," Morgana snapped. She'd been waiting by his car. Elijah had beaten her here. "I don't trust the two of you alone in the same _building_ together, let alone a road trip. So if I'm to play babysitter, then you're both the babies."

She gestured to the car. "Now if you'd be so kind as to open the door, I'll climb in."  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
They pulled up at a barbeque shack along the road.

"Good thing we brought the German sports car," Elijah said.

"Says the man in the five thousand dollar suit," Marcel shot back.

"Nine. If we're counting. I'm not a barbarian."

Morgana finally made it out of the car, finishing up a round of curses. She turned to them and pointed at it. "As nice as it is, next time we're taking my car."

"You drive a Jeep," Marcel replied.

"And you have an attitude problem."

"Alright, look, your expert better pay off. Otherwise we're wasting time that we don't have."

"See, that's so very hurtful, Marcellus," Elijah sighed. "And here I thought we were having a marvelous galactic adventure together."

"Funny, I don't remember leaving the planet," Morgana said drily.

"The only reason you invited me on this little road trip is so you could play bodyguard," Marcel said.

"Babysitter," Elijah and Morgana corrected at the same time.

"Keep my power from falling into the hands of the Hollow, right? See, you're always working some angle to protect your family. At least Klaus is upfront about it, but you with your manners and your suits and your handkerchiefs..."

"What do you want me to do?" Elijah asked. "We're under threat."

Morgana was glad Grendel had stayed home. He would've clawed them to shreds by now.

"I know that," Marcel replied. "And I know how you handle threats. You made that clear when you tore my heart out five years ago. And just so we're clear now, there's no way I will ever forgive you for that."

"I don't expect you to," Elijah replied. "I certainly never forgave myself."

Morgana muttered something about taking a walk and went off.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
She didn't get very far. Alaric Saltzman--the "expert" everyone was talking about--called to let them know he'd run into some trouble and couldn't make it to the barbeque shack. When they pulled up next to him on the road, it was obvious why.

His car had exploded. He had multiple cuts and bruises and seemed to be limping, but was otherwise unharmed.

"Considering what seems to have happened to your car, I'd say you’re in good shape," Morgana remarked. "What the hell happened?"

"Well, aside from forfeiting my lease, I blew up one of those vampire-witch combos when she tried to take the bone," he replied.

"What did she look like?" Elijah asked.

"Brunette, gorgeous, lace top, black jacket, glowing blue eyes."

Marcel groaned. "Sofya. The Hollow's inside Sofya, probably using her."

"Or using all of us," Elijah said.

"We gotta find a way to save her."

"Or put her out of her misery."

"I'm sorry, what? Did I hear that right? Oh, that's right. That's the Mikaelson way, isn't it? I mean, why try to save someone when you can just kill them?"

"Shut up, both of you," Morgana snapped.

"Do you really wanna stand around and whine about a missing finger bone, or do you wanna talk about a ledger that points us to where the other bones might be?" Alaric added. "I studied the records, I got a family name: Del Robles. Bloodline ends ten years ago, and according to the Lockwood records, somebody in that family is buried with one of those mystical bones."

"Where?" Morgana asked.

"Black Clay Cemetery in the Treme."

Elijah began walking back to the car. "Sofya has a head start."

"Hey, wait, wait, wait," Marcel stopped him. "That cemetery was redeployed. Too much flooding. The bodies were moved to two separate locales: the Haves and the Have Nots."

"Del Robles were aristocracy," Elijah said. "It means their crypt was moved to St. Ailbhe Cemetery."

"Yeah, that sounds like fun," Alaric interjected. "But on the way, can you drop me off at the ER?"  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana had made sure Alaric was taken care of before they made it to the cemetery. The place was...unsettling. Very different feeling than Lafayette.

They paused in front of a shut gate.

"Here's the Del Robles crypt," Marcel said. "Looks like, given the body count, we're gonna have to check thousands of bones."

Morgana read the inscription. "'Our hearts will always defend this land.' Clue?"

Marcel gave a "maybe" shrug. Elijah opened the gates and entered the crypt. "Let's get to work."

They spent quite a while going through the graves inside, studying each one and looking for any sort of sign that this elusive bone might be hidden inside.

"Olivia Tierra Del Robles," Elijah said.

Morgana joined him in front of a tomb. "Tierra is land. And all the hearts will defend it."

She took a step back and held out her hand. "Back up."

She only gave them a moment to obey before she blew the tomb open. Inside lay nothing but a bone. Marcel reached in and took it.

Elijah held his hand out. "Now give it to me."

"Yeah, I don't think so," Marcel replied.

"I'm not going to ask again."

"You have one of the bones already. The smart play would be to keep them divided, yet still in the hands of an ally you trust. So I guess you're gonna have to trust me, Elijah."

Elijah shoved him against the wall. He pulled out the dagger that could kill Marcel and pointed it at him.

Morgana held her hand out, and the bone flew into her hand. Elijah let Marcel go, and they both stared at her. She glared at them.

"This is why I came with," she hissed. "You're so full of distrust and grudges that you can't put them aside long enough to remember who our true enemy is."

She glanced at the dagger still in Elijah's hand. "If you don't put that away, I'll take it as well."

He hesitated. She rolled her eyes and held out her other hand. The dagger flew into it. She stuck it in her inside jacket pocket.

"That belongs to me."

Shit.

Morgana turned around. Sofya--the Hollow--was standing in the doorway.

"Sofya, I know you're still in there," Marcel said.

"She is," the Hollow replied. "Strong soul rattling around in a dying shell. But like the rest of you, she's nothing compared to me. One last time: give me what I seek."

"Come and pry it from my cold, dead hands, honey," Morgana said, deadpan.

"Fair enough," the Hollow said. "So long as you're prepared to make good on that threat."

She held out her hand, and Morgana flew back into the graves, bone flying out of her hand. Crashes around her told her Elijah and Marcel were taken out as well. She groaned and tried to sit up, but a magical weight pressed down hard on her chest, keeping her down. She could hardly breathe, head pounding, as the Hollow took the bone.

"Now the game comes to an end," she said.

The weight lifted off Morgana just enough for her to roll on to her side. The Hollow was back by the exit. A figure appeared in front of her. Morgana blinked.

"Not just yet," Hayley said.

She took out a knife and sliced her palm, then struck the Hollow in her side. The Hollow leapt back and hissed.

"Hurts, huh?" Hayley asked. "My blood?"

Morgana stood. Elijah and Marcel followed suit.

"Whoever told you how to destroy me left a little something out," the Hollow said. "Trapping me requires the release of power. The kind you get when you sacrifice the life of an immortal."

Morgana's stomach flipped.

"Tell me," the Hollow continued. "Which of you will die to stop me?"

"No one is dying today," Marcel snapped.

"Well, then I guess we're done," she said.

She forced them all down to the ground. Morgana was the first one up. The Hollow was gone.

Her gut was telling her something wasn't right, and it wasn't just that the Hollow had taken the bone.

"Hayley," she said. "Where is Klaus?"

"Davina has him," Hayley replied, standing.

Morgana called on Air and flew out of the crypt, cursing as she went.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
The others met her as she reached the doors. Marcel and Hayley went in with her. Elijah stayed behind so as not to piss off Davina.  
Klaus was lying unconscious in a salt circle. Davina was standing next to him.

"Davina," Marcel started.

"Don't try to stop me, Marcel," she cut him off. "If I don't kill Klaus, if I don't put down the Hollow, she'll come for all of you. She'll burn the entire city."

"Please, Davina," Morgana begged.

"D, there's gotta be another way," Marcel added.

"No," Davina insisted. "I was just waiting for the weapon, but now that you're here... I'm sorry. But you need to kill him."

"No, Davina."

"He's lived ten lifetimes, that's more than enough."

"He's Hope's father," Hayley argued.

"She'll still have you, but if we don't stop the Hollow now, Hope will die. You can save her, Marcel. And everyone in New Orleans."

"Stop this," Elijah said from behind them. "This is about your grievances with me."

"This has nothing to do with you," Davina replied. "This is about a sacrifice. One death for the greater good."

"Take me," Morgana said.

"You might not wake up this time," Davina warned.

"I've lived long enough. I'm over four hundred years old and a powerful Elemental witch. I have plenty of power in me. Use me."

"Morgana," Elijah said quietly, taking her wrist.

She looked at them each in turn, putting on a brave front. "If this is my time to go, tell him I'm sorry, and I love him."

Elijah nodded, releasing her. She faced Davina.

" _No!_ "

They all turned around, shocked. Hope was standing behind them, furious. She glared at Davina. 

"You promised to help, but you're not helping," she said. "You're hurting us, and I won't let you."

She held her hand out and blasted a hole in the salt circle. Davina yelped and disappeared. Klaus sat up, and Hope ran to him and hugged him. Grendel ran in and launched himself at Morgana, who caught him.

Holy shit.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana flopped back against the pillows, sighing, and stretched out her legs. She dragged a hand down her face and then through her hair. She closed her eyes. Another terrifying day.

"Hayley told me you offered yourself up to be the sacrifice."

She cracked open her eyes. Klaus was standing at the foot of the bed, arms crossed. She closed her eyes again. "Mmhm."

"Even though you were informed of the possibility you would stay dead."

"Actually, I was told there would be mimosas and an all-you-can-eat buffet."

"This isn't funny, Morgana."

"Neither was the prospect of your death, Niklaus. Besides, the chances of me dying and staying dead are practically non-existent."

When he didn't reply, she opened her eyes again. He was still standing there, still looking at her. She got off the bed and walked around it to him. She uncrossed his arms and wrapped hers around his torso, laying her head against his chest so she could hear his heartbeat.

"We've had this discussion more times than I care to count," she said quietly. "But in case you need a reminder, I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe. Even if that means I might die a permanent death. Hope needs you."

He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on top of her head. "And I need you."

Her throat tightened. She squeezed her eyes shut, and they tightened their grips on each other.

"Then we'll just have to agree to try our damnedest not to die permanently," she whispered. "If not for self-preservation, then for the sake of each other's sanity. Okay?"

"Okay," he agreed after a moment.


	9. Queen Death

Morgana enjoyed long, warm bubble baths. They were great stress relievers, especially after a long day. It had been a long time since she'd had one, and, considering the small reprieve from the Hollow's attacks, she had decided to take one. It had been just as wonderful as she'd expected.

What she hadn't expected was Klaus barging into the bathroom without so much as a knock.

"Oh my God, Klaus!" She yelped, nearly slipping under the water. "Have you heard of this thing, it's called knocking, I think you'd like it. God knows I certainly would."

"Nothing I haven't seen before, love," he replied.

She was about to make a snappy comeback, but the words died on her lips when she noticed his expression. "What's wrong?"

"Elijah left last night to visit Marcel. He hasn't returned."

She kept her face neutral, masking the instant dread. "Odd. Give me a moment, and I'll be right out."  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
By the time she'd gotten out and down in the courtyard, Klaus had left to see Marcel. Freya had set up for a locator spell. Hayley was on the phone, and Grendel lingered at the top of the stairs.

Hayley turned to them, hanging up. "He's not at Marcel's."

"We'll find him," Freya assured her.

She and Morgana joined hands. "Jälgida minu blóo mitt. Jälgida minu blóo mitt."

Morgana looked up at Hayley. "He's cloaked by magic."

A shadow behind Hayley caught her gaze. Vincent stepped forward.

"That's her," he said. "That's the Hollow. She has Elijah, and now she wants the bone."

"In exchange for what?" Hayley asked.

"No, you don't understand. There won't be an exchange. She needs Elijah to die in order to channel energy from his sacrifice. She's already poisoned him with the rose thorns. She wants the bone by sundown. If she doesn't get it, then she's gonna come here and she's gonna take it. And when she does, she's gonna burn the entire city to the ground."

Morgana swallowed hard. She pulled out her phone to call Klaus and began leaving the room. "I'll be right back."  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
When Klaus arrived, Marcel was with him. Everyone else were already waiting for them. In fact, Morgana wasn't sure if any of them had even moved since she called.

"You want a plan of attack, it comes down to this," Vincent began. "Use the element of surprise. Now, Marcel will hand over the bone, and then stab the Hollow with Hayley's blood, and then I'm gonna cast spell the spell that buries her."

"The Ancestors' spell requires a sacrifice," Hayley said. "An Original has to die."

"Yeah, and right now, the Hollow is gonna use Elijah's death to come back, but there's a window where I can use the sacrifice to shove her back into her grave."

"You'll forgive me for stating the obvious, but your plan does nothing to save my brother," Klaus snapped. "In fact, it relies entirely upon his death."

"Easy," Marcel warned. "He's just trying to help."

"Klaus, Elijah's already dead," Vincent said. "Now the only thing we can do right now is figure out whether or not that death is gonna count for something."

"That's not a call any of us get to make," Hayley argued. "Especially not you. There has to be a way to save him."

"Freya, you still have the antidote we used to cure Marcel's bite?" Klaus asked.

"I have it, yes," Freya replied. "But I don't know if it'll work against the poison of the rosebush."

"You guys aren't listening, okay?" Vincent interrupted. "Even if we do cure Elijah, we still have a big problem, that's called the Hollow. And it's just gonna keep coming at us until it resurrects. And when that happens, we're talking about an ancient, primal power that's made flesh and blood. It will wipe out this entire city in an afternoon, and ain't a damn thing that you or anybody else here can do about it. Now, my way? We take her out while she's still a spirit. Elijah dies, but at least his death counts for something."

"No," Klaus insisted. "No. I'm not willing to discuss this any further."

"What about your little girl?" Vincent asked. "This thing wiped out the entire Labonair bloodline."

He glanced at Hayley. "It already got to Hope once, right?"

She nodded.

"Now, this is a chance, Klaus," he continued. "This is probably the one chance that you got. Now you want to blow that opportunity to maybe save your brother, or do you want to do your job and save your little girl?"

"Don't use my daughter to justify your absurd plan," Klaus growled.

"Hey, his "absurd" plan is the only plan we've got," Marcel cut in. "So maybe we should do a little less fighting, and a little more thinking."

"There's always a loophole," Freya said. She turned to Vincent. "I have my mother's grimoires. I welcome you to study them with me."

Vincent sighed. "Okay."

He looked like he'd rather do anything else. Morgana went with them as they left the room, forming her own plan.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
She hadn't said anything about her plan to anyone yet. If she had to enact it, not everyone would know.

"So I went through Cami's logs," Vincent said. "Even if we channel every dark object she had, it still wouldn't be enough to trap the Hollow."

"Great," Freya groaned. "Well, my mother had a million spells, and absolutely nothing on trapping ancient spirits."

"It's funny to me, because, um, was it five years ago, we were in this exact same room, trying to work out a way to take out a different threat to your family. You made the call to take out Davina. In your mind, the ends justify the means, I get that. But what am I to think now? Elijah's life is just worth more?"

"Elijah's my brother, alright?" Freya sighed. "And if you think that I never regretted what we did to Davina, then you're wrong."

"No, I think that we are wasting our time here trying to loophole ourselves out of the inevitable."

"That's great for you, Vincent, but we're not giving up," Morgana snapped.

"Is it really giving up though?" He demanded. "Elijah's a thousand years old. How many lifetimes is gonna be enough? How much longer is he going to feed off the blood of innocent people whose lives amount to a fraction of his own?"

"I get it, okay, you hate us," Freya hissed. "But that doesn't mean that Elijah has to die stopping some beast that crawled from the basement of your city."

"There is no other choice!" He yelled. "We don't have any other option, Freya! You Mikaelsons, you're the oldest family in the whole world. You're the oldest family of all time. You've seen empires rise, you've seen empires fall. You've seen ages begin and end. And yet somehow, despite every single thing you have seen with your own eyes, you fail to see the obvious. You don't get the takeaway. Everything dies, Freya!"

"Not Elijah. Not today, okay? I already lost my brother Finn, and..."

Morgana raised an eyebrow as Freya trailed off.

"Of course," Freya breathed. "That's it. I can save him. I can save him using this."

She held up a necklace. The same one she had used to hold Finn's spirit.

Morgana chewed her bottom lip. Maybe she wouldn't have to go with her plan after all.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
She and Freya had gone upstairs to inform Klaus and Hayley.

"Vincent said the Ancestors can imprison the Hollow," Freya said. "To power their spell, an Original must die. If Elijah is going to die one way or another, we should harness his death, and then I can try placing his soul inside the pendant."

"Try?" Hayley repeated. "What do you mean, try?"

"It won't be easy," Morgana replied. "We have to find him, and it'll take all of our combined magic, and he's been poisoned for a while. There's a chance he won't survive it."

"But I would survive," Klaus said.

Morgana closed her eyes. "Klaus."

"If I'm the sacrifice, you can channel my death to imprison the Hollow before she kills Elijah," he went on. "Yes, I'll be in the pendant, but the rest of you can find him, cure him and bring him home."

"This is insanity," she hissed, opening her eyes.

"That evil wench cannot be killed. Left unchecked she will come for Hope. Sacrifice me, we can save Elijah and we can defeat this thing. It's the only way. We don't have time to debate this."

He took her hand and squeezed. "It's gonna be okay."

He let go and left. When she was sure he wouldn't hear, she turned to Hayley and Freya.

"It’s not the only way."  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
They had to be quick. Klaus still thought he was going to be the sacrifice. Morgana and Vincent were in the cemetery preparing. Everyone else was at the compound, mainly keeping Klaus preoccupied.

She laid down on the altar. "How much longer?"

"We're almost there," he replied. "All that's left is your death. Once I scratch you with the thorns, I'll stab you in the heart to end things quick and painless. The Ancestors are gonna help me with everything else."

God, her heart was pounding. She couldn't tell if she was afraid to die, of Klaus finding out and stopping her, or of it not working. Maybe all of the above.

"Might reconsider, Vincent. Or else your friend dies."

Morgana sat up and got off the altar. A group of the Hollow's followers were there. One of them, the man who'd spoken, was holding a knife to a woman's throat.

"Can I do it myself?" Morgana whispered.

Vincent nodded. She placed a hand on the altar, making it look as if she were bracing herself. Her palm landed on the thorns, and she got ready to prick herself.

"If you're so eager to die, be patient," the man said. "Once the Hollow rises, she'll kill you herself."

"Man, you don't have to do this," Vincent pleaded. "I mean, we're all New Orleans witches here, right?"

"You talk of witches as you make deals with vampires. It's 'cause of them that we need the Hollow."

"Please, man, she is never going to save you. She's just gonna damn you to Hell."

Morgana made a fist with her other hand, and the man's neck broke. The woman bolted away as his body dropped to the ground, and Vincent caught her. Morgana raised the hand she had poised above the thorns and threw a fireball at the rest of the group, sending them running.

A figure suddenly appeared, darting from follower to follower and killing them. Her heart dropped as Klaus caught her eye.

But this was a conversation for another day, because Vincent's cry made Morgana whip around.

A follower had snuck behind them and burned the thorns. She cursed and burned them alive.

"They're gone," Vincent said, turning to them. "I can't complete the sacrifice without them."  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana and Klaus burst into a cabin. Elijah was laying in a salt circle, barely conscious and sickly. Freya and Hayley were simply trying to stay standing, because the Hollow was there, back in spirit form. Wind ripped all around and through them, and the bright blue light of the Hollow almost burned Morgana's eyes.

"What happened?" Hayley shouted.

"She knew we were coming!" Klaus yelled back. "We have no choice, get Elijah into the pendant."

Freya grabbed the pendant and closed her fists around it. Morgana grabbed her shoulders and held on.

"Spasiti animam suam. Spasiti animam suam."

"Hurry, she's killing him!" Hayley yelled.

"Spasiti animam suam. Spasiti animam suam."

Morgana grit her teeth.

"Spasiti animam suam. Spasiti animam suam."

"Her magic's blocking us, she's too strong!" Freya cried.

"Spasiti animam suam. Spasiti animam suam. Spasiti animam suam. Spasiti animam suam."

The wind stopped. The light disappeared. Morgana opened her eyes and let go of Freya.

Elijah was completely desiccated.

"Freya, did it work?" Hayley asked.

"Where's the pendant?" Klaus asked.

Freya opened her hands. They were covered in blood, the pendant laying in fragments. Morgana's heart dropped.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"This isn't happening," Hayley said. "Tell me Elijah's in there."

They were all back at the compound, in the study. Freya was sitting at the desk. Hayley was standing at the other side of it, and Morgana was standing next to Freya on her left.

There was no sign of Elijah's soul in the pendant.

"I can't tell yet," Freya replied. "I've been reaching out, but..."

"You're exhausted. Just take some time to gather yourself."

Klaus stormed into the room. "We've wasted enough time! My brother's soul is in that pendant. We need to find him and bring him back."

"Klaus, give them a moment to breathe," Hayley said.

"We failed him once already--"

“ _Klaus, enough!_ "

There was a brief pause.

"There's just...nothing," Freya said. "There's nothing there. I think...I think he's gone."

A few tears leaked down Hayley's face. Morgana swallowed, eyes burning.

"Try again," Klaus said.

"Klaus, I did try," Freya replied.

"I am asking you to try again. I know he's in there."

"Nik," Morgana whispered.

" _Try again!_ "

A few tears spilled down her own face. She placed her hand on Freya's shoulder, and Freya hovered her hands over the pendant.

"Leigheas brotin. Leigheas brotin."

Freya sighed.

"We just need some time," Morgana said.

"This is not happening," Klaus said. "For a thousand years, my brother and I have walked this Earth. Countless times death has come for us, and countless times we've denied her. He's not gone. He can't be."

"What is that?"

They turned to see Hope standing in the doorway, looking at the pendant.

"Hope," Hayley said. "Go back to bed, sweetie. I'll be there in a second."

She tried to usher Hope out of the room, but Hope went around her. She touched Freya's wrist, and Morgana gasped.

Flashes of a stark white hallway. A red wooden door. Someone's screams--Elijah, screaming somewhere in the distance.

Morgana opened her eyes and took her hand off Freya's shoulder. Freya turned to Hope. "Did you see that? Did you feel it?"

"Uncle Elijah," Hope replied. "He sounds so far away."

"He's in there," Hayley breathed. "You heard him, right?"

"We heard him," Morgana confirmed. "He's in there, somewhere, but..."

"But what?" Klaus asked.

"His voice was distorted. Like radio static, and we just heard...him screaming."

Now how the hell were they gonna get Elijah out?


	10. Phantomesque

Klaus entered the room. "Rebekah and Kol just landed. I just assured them we're mere minutes away from returning our brother to life. Don't make me a liar."

"We can't resurrect Elijah until we're certain his mind is whole," Freya replied.

"Well, you saved Finn with that very trinket." He gestured to the broken pendant on the table. "What's the problem?"

"When the pendant was shattered, Elijah's mind shattered with it. He's most likely retreated to the innermost of his consciousness."

"How do we find that?" Hayley asked.

Morgana glanced at Freya.

"I don't know," Freya sighed. "It could be anywhere in over a thousand years of memories, but if I try fixing the pendant before finding him and healing his mind, he'll be permanently fractured."

"It would be like casting a broken bone before it's been properly set," Morgana added.

"Spare me the medical analogies and fix him," Klaus growled.

Morgana raised an eyebrow.

"I need to go inside his mind and find him," Freya snapped. "Once I'm sure his mind is stable, then I can fix the pendant."

"Well then, stop talking and get in there."

" _Klaus_ ," Morgana hissed. "Go take a walk. Go to the bar. Just _please_ let us _work_ , for God's sake."

He spun on his heel and left. She blew out a breath of frustration. Hayley turned to them.

"Please tell me you can do this," she said quietly.

"He's my brother," Freya replied. "I'm not gonna stop until he's safe."

They spent the next hour preparing. Candles and herbs, as well as two salt circles with the necessary symbols, one around the pendant and a larger one on the ground.

"You actually think you can pull this off?" Hayley asked.

"I don't know," Freya admitted. "I've never actually tried this before."

Hayley glanced at Morgana, who shook her head. Morgana looked at Freya. "Given that there's a thousand years of memories to sort through, how are you going to know which is the correct one?"

"He'll recognize me," Freya replied. "If I can find the core of his being or whatever memory he's clinging to, I'll pull him out."

She stepped inside the salt circle and laid down. Morgana sat at the head and closed her eyes.

"Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz."

Freya shot up with a gasp. Morgana's eyes snapped open, and she and Hayley knelt in the circle on either side of her.

"What happened?" Morgana asked.

"I thought I found him," Freya breathed. "But he just vanished right in front of me. That's not our only problem."

She stood and walked over to the table. Morgana and Hayley followed suit.

"I can't search Elijah's mind and sustain the spell at the same time," she continued.

"What if you sent me in?" Hayley offered.

"That would require more power."

"You stay here and anchor the spell. He'll respond to me. Send me in, I can find him. Nobody's closer to Elijah than I am."

"To put you in the pendant, we would need another powerful witch to channel," Morgana said slowly.

She hesitated, glancing at Freya.

"Born of my family's bloodline," Freya finished.

"Hope," Hayley said. "No." She turned to Morgana. "You're a powerful witch, why can't it just be you?"

"I'm not of Mikaelson blood," Morgana explained. "If this is going to work, if we are to send you into the pendant to find Elijah, the spell needs the power of the Mikaelsons."

"She's too young for this," Hayley argued.

Freya took her hands. "She's young, but she's strong. Stronger than I was at her age. Hayley, I would never hurt my niece, ever."

"If there is even the smallest sign that something goes wrong, we'll stop," Morgana promised.

Hayley looked between them for a long moment, then sighed and went to get Hope. Morgana rubbed her temples and took a deep breath.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"You don't have to do this if you don't want to," Hayley said.

"It's okay," Hope replied. "I'm not afraid."

Freya went over to them and took Hope's hand. "Ready?"

Hope nodded. They joined Morgana at the table.

"So he's just in there somewhere, clinging to broken memories?" Hayley asked, beginning to lay down in the circle.

"The core of his being has retreated deep into his subconscious, but yes, he's still in there," Freya replied.

"And I just search until I find him?"

"You don't have enough time," Morgana replied. "There are too many memories for you to just randomly search through. You need to figure out where Elijah would seek refuge. It's going to be somewhere that represents the fundamental basis of who he is. Hopefully it's a good place. But when you find it, draw him out and wake him up. And be careful, because his mind is unstable."

Hayley nodded.

"Mom?" Hope called.

Hayley looked at her over her shoulder.

"Be careful."

"I'll be right back, sweetie," Hayley assured her.

She laid down, and Freya and Morgana took Hope's hands.

"Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz."

Morgana heard Hope join in.

"Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz."

Something changed. Morgana cracked open her eyes. Hayley was shaking violently. Hope must've noticed the change in the spell as well, because she let go of their hands and ran over to Hayley, calling her.

"Hope!" Morgana called, rushing over to her.

"Aunt Ana, Aunt Freya, please, do something!" Hope begged.

"Hope, sweetheart, you need to focus on the spell," Morgana replied.

Hope wasn't listening. Morgana took her hands. "Hope. If we don't maintain the spell, we could lose her in there."

"Let me help," Hope pleaded. "I can save her."

Morgana glanced at Freya. Freya nodded. Morgana looked back to Hope.

"Okay. We need you to trust us, okay? We're gonna put you inside the pendant, and when you're in there, call out to your mom, okay?"

Hope nodded.

"When you're in the hallway," Freya added, "do not open any doors. Do you understand?"

Hope nodded again.

"Okay, lay down now, sweetheart," Morgana instructed. "We'll see you soon."

Morgana stood and went back to Freya. Her hands were shaking. She took Freya's hand and closed her eyes.

"Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz. Tillate ulaz."

Morgana heard a gasp and opened her eyes. Hope was rushing over to them. "Mom said it's safe to fix the pendant."

Morgana let go of Freya and guided Hope to stand between them. Hope took their hands and joined them.

"Leigheas brotin. Leigheas brotin. Leigheas brotin. Leigheas brotin."

Another gasp. Hope let go and ran over to Hayley, who was sitting up. Hayley caught her. Morgana breathed a sigh of relief.


	11. A Spirit Here That Won't Be Broken

"Despite the spell we cast, the very integrity of the pendant is growing unstable," Freya said. "It won't be able to hold Elijah's soul much longer. We need to find a way to resurrect him tonight, or we could lose him forever."

"To do that, we'll need more power," Hayley reminded them.

"Let me guess," Klaus grumbled. "A grand sacrifice."

Morgana chewed her nail. Grendel wound around her legs.

"I say we kill our enemy and sacrifice her," Freya said. "Then we can channel the power from the Hollow's death, raise Elijah's body, and place him back where he belongs."

"We've tried everything," Hayley argued.

"And we've come close. Labonair blood is her Achilles heel. Hayley, your blood weakened her, but you've technically been dead for years, so it won't be strong enough to kill her. If we forge a blade using the blood of the last living Labonair..."

"We don't want Hope involved," Klaus argued.

"She's already involved," Freya insisted. She pulled out Hope's drawings. "Hope has been obsessed with the symbol that follows the Hollow: the serpent consuming itself. Now, I believe this is showing us the key, the only means to which she can be destroyed: her own blood. The Hollow's one end of the Labonair bloodline. Hope is the other. We need to close that loop. The best way to do that is for Hayley to wield a weapon forged with Hope's blood. When she stabs her, it's only then the Hollow can be obliterated completely."

After a moment, Hayley stood and headed for the exit. "Then we'll make it work. I'll talk to Hope."

Morgana stared at the drawing on the table and sighed through her nose.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Hearing footsteps, she opened her eyes.

"That's a rather odd locator spell," Rebekah mused.

Indeed, the large wreath set on top of the map was strange.

"We're trying to trace the Hollow's magic," Morgana explained. "Almost have it."

A small black circle, oddly reminiscent of the Hollow's serpent, appeared on the map. "And there it is. She's in the Garden District."

"That's the LaForge house," Rebekah said. "At one time it was the center of high society, but that all changed when Dr. LaForge tortured and killed his friends and family. Claimed until his dying day that an evil spirit made him do it. That house has been derelict ever since."

"Rather convenient," Morgana muttered, eyebrow raised.

"The perfect lair for someone who relishes tragedy," Freya agreed.

Another, smaller serpent appeared on the map, a bit aways from the first one.

"What's that?" Rebekah asked.

"If the serpent at the LaForge house represents the Hollow herself, then this must be some sort of totem she's using to magnify her power and protect herself," Freya said. "Dahlia used to use these when she was up to something particularly awful."

"It's gonna make her unkillable," Morgana added. "We'll have to destroy it before we can face her."

"Lovely," Rebekah sighed, pulling out her phone. "I could do with some fresh air. And some fresh blood."

Freya folded up the map and handed it to her. "Take the map. It's been spelled to track the totem. Don't go alone."

Rebekah took the map. "One step ahead of you, sis."

Her next words were to the person on the other line. "Someone's floating around with a trinket that's fueling our enemy's power. What say you help me track down and exterminate this scoundrel?"

A pause. Rebekah smirked at Morgana and Freya. "Perfect."  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
The LaForge house obviously used to be pretty. A family home. Now, however, the plants creeping everywhere on and around it, the signs of the damage time had wrought, had left it empty and broken. Morgana supposed it was symbolic as she studied it from the sidewalk.

Freya handed her and Hayley each a knife, then pulled out one of her own when they took them. "I sealed these with Hope's blood. One for each of us. Once the totem is destroyed, we can sacrifice the Hollow."

Morgana and Hayley made to enter the house. Freya lingered. They shared a glance.

"Are you okay?" Hayley asked.

"Yeah," Freya replied. "I never thought twice about fighting or dying for family before. But now, with Keelin..."

"Now you have someone you're afraid you're not going to go home to," Morgana finished. "You'll be home tonight, Freya. We have your back."

Freya nodded. They went into the house. Inside was no better than outside. Worse, actually, considering the amount of dead bodies scattered everywhere. And this was only the first floor.

The door slammed shut behind them. Morgana heard scratching from the other side.

"Stay there, Grendel," Morgana whispered. "If something goes wrong, get help."

"I guess she knows we're here," Hayley muttered.

Freya suddenly flew across the room, landing head first and crashing into a table. Morgana ran over to her. She made it only halfway when a force threw her against the wall. Pain bloomed in her spine and ribs, and the same force slammed her head back against the wall. She never felt the pain.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Morgana woke up slowly. Her head throbbed in time with her heartbeat. Sharp banging rang out from the other room. She got up quick as she could, grabbing her knife off the floor, and followed it. Freya was hammering away at a large metal padlock.

"Back up," Morgana ordered.

She held out her hand and called on Fire. The padlock turned red from the heat, but it didn't melt. She tried harder, and slowly--God, so slowly--it began to melt.

"Hit it again where it's melting," she said.

Freya obliged. Three hits later, the lock was off, and the rushed into the room. Hayley was sitting on the ground, coughing and gasping like she'd been suffocating.

"Are you all right?" Freya asked.

"Did Klaus break the totem?" Hayley asked.

"Sure as hell hope so," Morgana replied. "But we can't wait to see if he did. Too much time has passed. You need to stab the Hollow."

She held out the knife. "Are you strong enough?"

Hayley took it. "Let's do this."

She vamp sped upstairs. Morgana and Freya followed as fast as they could. When they made it to the room Hayley was in, they found her straddling the Hollow's body, repeatedly stabbing it.

They rushed over to her and pulled her away. Morgana stared at the Hollow's corpse. Somehow it almost seemed like too good of a dream to be reality.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
God, she was tired. But Morgana couldn't seem to fall asleep.

Grendel hadn't left her side since she got out of the LaForge house. He was sleeping fine, curled up at the foot of the bed. The spell had worked. Elijah was back, alive and well. The Hollow was gone.

She rubbed her eyes, sighing through her nose, and tried again.

She was halfway gone when the bed dipped behind her and Klaus draped an arm across her. She rolled over and wrapped her arms around his torso.

Maybe now, with the Hollow dead and gone, they could finally find some peace.


	12. Voodoo Child

"Impossible," Klaus said. "Whatever those thieving acolytes are up to, they function independently of the Hollow."  
Going to the cemetery hadn't exactly been on Morgana's to do list. Finding out the Hollow might not be dead was worse.

"I watched Hayley kill her," she agreed, arms crossed.

"Her body is dead," Vincent said impatiently. "That's not enough."

"What are you saying?" Elijah asked.

"I'm saying that by now the Ancestors should've been able to imprison her spirit. That didn't happen. The spirit's still out there, so she must've had a plan B."

"No doubt," Klaus agreed. "Perhaps they had assistance. Tell me, were you a part of it?"

"Klaus, don't," Morgana groaned.

"I trust Vincent," Marcel said.

"Look," Vincent cut in. "I don't care if any of you trust me, to be perfectly honest, because unlike all of you, I have been doing something. I've been spending the past couple of days trying to figure out how to put the Hollow away for good."

"And do you have any answers?" Elijah asked.

"Yes...and no. I used the book to put myself into a trance."

"What book?" Morgana asked.

"The book he found," Marcel explained. "Contains the secrets of the Hollow's magic. Written in his handwriting."

Her eyebrows went up.

"Well, you can see how no part of me is filled with a modicum of confidence," Klaus grumbled.

"While I was in that trance," Vincent continued. "I met with the spirit of Inadu's mother. From her I was trying to get the spell she used fifteen hundred years ago to put her daughter down. That's when those acolytes showed up and stopped me."

"Well, what are you waiting for? Get back to work!"

"The acolytes took the book."

"I have a library full of grimoires, take your pick!"

"That book is special, Klaus," Morgana said. "It's an extension of the Hollow's magic into our world."

She looked to Vincent for confirmation. He nodded. She turned back to Klaus. "Which means it's as eternal as she is."

"If I can tweak the spell in just the right way, I can lock her in the book and put the Hollow away for good," Vincent said.

"Where's the book now?"

"It's still with the acolytes." He pulled a piece of paper out of his back pocket. "I used this page from the book to track them to the place where she was reborn. That's where you'll find them."

She nodded and headed for the exit, Klaus and Elijah on her heels. The creepy old house in the middle of the woods it was.  
\---------------------  
The acolytes were inside, performing a spell and praying at the same time. Morgana quietly stepped forward, waiting for them to notice her. She smiled when they did.

"Hello," she said. "I apologize for intruding, but I'm a little lost. I'm looking for a group of individuals into some nasty business. I was wondering if you could help me, but it seems you lot fit the bill just fine."

Klaus and Elijah came up on either side of her.

"We were hoping to borrow a book," she continued. "It's a limited edition, very rare. Mind if we have it?"

"Even if you succeed in taking the book," one of them said. "You will stop nothing. The spell has already begun. You've no idea the gravity of your situation, do you?"

"By all means, spend the last few moments of your life illuminating things for us," Klaus said.

"The Hollow has shed her flesh to take on that of another."

"Yes, yes, yes, and we'll kill that body as well, and on and on until she gets the hint."

"Oh, you won't dare kill the body she's taken. Even now she's locking herself within the greatest witch this world may ever know."

Morgana's heart dropped.

"And in a lovely touch of irony, it's someone you would rather die than allow to be harmed."

Klaus attacked him. She and Elijah joined in right after, killing all the acolytes and taking the book. And while Klaus and Elijah vamp sped to the cemetery, Morgana called on Air and flew, Grendel tucked inside her jacket.

There were bodies on the ground when they got there. Marcel, Vincent and Sofya were talking.

"They got what they deserved," she was saying.

"My sentiments exactly," Klaus said. "That monstrosity has its claws into my daughter. I said I'd get you this book in exchange for your help. You're up."

He gave the book to Vincent, who went inside one of the tombs. Morgana and Marcel followed. Klaus and Elijah followed a moment later. She turned to them and gestured to the book.

"This thing is filled with the Hollow's magic," she said. "Hope's connected to that. She's connected to you through your blood. If we can bring all those things together, then I went should be able to craft a spell that can get you to her. Then you just have to keep her with us."

"Let's do it," Klaus replied.

She nodded, and got to work.  
\---------------------  
Though Morgana hated it, they left Klaus in the cemetery while they took care of the Hollow. The air felt heavy inside the compound. Once inside, they all split up.

Morgana went into one of the back rooms. The silence was unsettling, to say the least. She was glad she'd left Grendel with Klaus. All she had to do was stay out of sight until it was time. She heard the Hollow speak, and knew it was time.

She came out and stood next to Vincent. The Hollow--rather, her spirit--was trapped inside a salt circle. Morgana took Vincent's hand. He began the spell, and after listening to the incantation a couple times, she joined in.

"Arrêter majik sa à. Arrêter majik sa à. Arrêter majik sa à. Arrêter majik sa à."

The Hollow shrieked.

"That anger your feeling is called losing," Morgana said. "When we're done with you, you'll never be able to lock yourself inside Hope, and you'll never be free from the book. Arrêter majik sa à. Arrêter majik sa à."

The Hollow screamed and flung her arm out. The circle broke, and Morgana and Vincent were thrown in the air. Morgana didn't feel her the impact of her skull going through a wall.

She seemed to be the last to wake. Rebekah pulled her up, and caught her when she swayed. Morgana pushed some of her hair out of her face, wincing when she brushed her forehead. She waved off Rebekah's concern.

"Where is she?" Hayley asked.

"We couldn't save her," Vincent replied. "Hope's gone. She's the Hollow now."

"We have to find her," Elijah said. "Vincent, surely you can pull the Hollow out of--"

"Elijah, if it were easy enough for me to just pull her out then I wouldn't be standing here talking to you right now," Vincent snapped. 

"I don't have a place to put her. The book is destroyed, alright? The book was the only thing that's powerful enough to hold her spirit."

"Well, there must be some other way," Rebekah insisted.

"I don't know any other way."

Hayley stormed out of the compound. Rebekah sat Morgana down on one of the chairs. Morgana wiped at the dried blood crusted along her temple.

Grendel came running in. He crawled up her legs and on to her shoulder. Klaus stopped in the doorway. He took in the damage, the looks on everyone's faces. His gaze landed on Morgana. She didn't know what to say.

He looked to his siblings. "A thousand years ago, we three made an eternal vow. To protect each other, always and forever. Freya, that vow now includes you, as it includes my daughter. She is my heart and soul. Right now she's out there, alone in the darkness, fighting. We can't give up. So I'm begging you, all of you, if there's any chance--"

"I think I know a way to save her," Vincent cut in.

"Anything," Klaus replied.

"If we go this route, this is gonna be the end of your family," Vincent warned.

The blood drained from Morgana's face.

"This is gonna be the end of always and forever."


End file.
